Thai Radar Might Have Tracked Missing Plane

AP ^ | March 19, 2014 | CHRIS BRUMMITT and THANYARAT DOKSONE

[lbryce]

New radar data from Thailand gave Malaysian investigators more potential clues Wednesday for how to retrace the course of the missing Malaysian airliner, while a massive multinational search unfolded in an area the size of Australia.

Search crews from 26 countries including Thailand are looking for the plane that vanished early March 8 with 239 people aboard en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Frustration is growing among relatives of those on the plane at the lack of progress in the search.

[lbryce]

When asked why it took so long to release the information, Montol said it didn't raise any alarms at the time because the signal was not of something heading toward Thailand. He said the plane never entered Thai airspace.

When asked why it took so long to release the information, Montol said
a.We have very strict rules about providing information in midst of an ongoing investigation. Legally, we can only provide details of a missing airliner investigation to passengers of the flight and only if they present a boarding pass plus ticket of the missing flight.
b.The Malaysian Air Minister is my brother-in-law and he asked that I not divulge the information so as not to make him look stupid..
c.I no speeka dah Inglish.I go have to men's room now.
d. I am a Sabbath observer and am prohibited from making calls on the Sabbath when I was first informed of this.
e. Mhh. Okay, I give up. Why did I take so long to release the information?

[tcrlaf]

LOTS of Regional politics at work here...

Indonesia will not allow foreign ships and search aircraft to overfly Indonesian airspace. Same for Myanmar. Vietnam won’t allow non-V ships to search in it’s waters.

We forget that though Kuala Lumpur and Singapore may be glittering and Western, that this is still the third-world.